Australian woman could face death penalty after Malaysian ice arrest

Rose Powell

An Australian woman could face the death penalty after being arrested carrying methamphetamines near the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, say reports.

The 51-year-old was travelling through the country's main international airport en route from Shanghai to Melbourne when she searched by police and found to be carrying 1.5 kilograms of methamphetamine, according to Channel Seven.

Sixteen people in South Australia were arrested and charged with methamphentamine smuggling across Australia, Malaysia and Singapore in November this year.

They were arrested as a result of operation Jackknife, which targeted two bikie groups. The Rebels and the Finks were allegedly involved in exporting the drugs to Malaysia, where local contacts would distribute the drugs throughout south-east Asia.

Two Australians, Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers, were hanged in Malaysia in 1986 for trafficking heroin.